Saunders et al NLO chapter 2014

In: M.Barrett (Ed.) (2014). Collaborative Creative Thought and Practice in Music. Farnham, UK: Ashgate ISBN: 978-1-4724-1584-4 ISBN Short: 9781472415844 BL Reference: 781.3 LoC Control No: 2014022851

Chapter 17

‘Literacy Through Music’ – A Multidisciplinary and Multilayered Creative Collaboration Jo Saunders, Julian Knight, Angela Hobsbaum, Evangelos Himonides and Graham Welch The New London Orchestra’s ‘Literacy through Music’ programme was designed to improve children’s literacy abilities by engaging them in a series of musical activities within the primary school classroom. An important strand of this work was to support the professional development of generalist class teachers who reported lacking the confidence and/or necessary skills to continue this work beyond the life of the programme. The following discussion outlines the theoretical context of the project, the practical context and presents findings relating to both pupil and teacher outcomes.

Saunders et al (2014)

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The Theoretical Context Neurobiological Evidence: Music, Literacy and the Brain Three key strands of neuroscientific research resonate with the ‘Literacy through Music’ (LtM) programme of the New London Orchestra. These include studies in: (a) the underlying plasticity of the human brain; (b) the possibility of transfer effects from engaging in music; and, relatedly, (c) the reported relationships between music and language. The potential to learn new musical behaviours and move beyond existing levels of expertise relates to the underlying neuroplasticity of the brain. Research suggests that neural connections form in relation to experience, such as the structural changes found in the auditory cortex of individuals learning to play a musical instrument (Pantev, Lappe, Herholz, & Trainor, 2009) and the motor and auditory areas of 6-year-old children involved with instrumental music training (Hyde et al., 2009). Musicians develop finegrained auditory skills that extend into other domains including speech, language, emotion and auditory processing (Hannon & Trainor, 2007). Furthermore, research into the relationship between musical skill development, phonological processing and early reading ability in 4- and 5-year-olds suggests that ‘phonemic awareness and music perception ability tap some of the same basic auditory and/or cognitive skills needed for reading, but that they each also tap unique processing skills’ (Anvari, Trainor, Woodside, & Levy, 2002, p. 127). Increasingly, research lends support to the argument that sustained engagement with music can influence other than musical brain functions (Patel, 2010).


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In relation to the reported relationship between music and language, Patel (2009) reviewed evidence from a range of studies proposing that musicians have superior encoding ability for linguistic sounds. Neuroimaging studies, such as Koelsch, Jentschke, Sammler, & Mietchen, (2007) suggest that the neural substrates responsible for processing speech and music overlap, as do those involved with the syntactic processing of language and music. Our ability to understand both language and music stems from the appropriate application of rules acquired through experience. Speech has prosodic features similar to music, in that they ‘involve pitch level, range and contour, loudness variation, rhythm and tempo, and both language and music are governed by a grammar’ (Welch, Saunders, Hobsbaum, & Himonides, 2012). A systematic review and meta-analysis of 24 studies evaluating arts participation and learning outcomes of young people found that the balance of evidence suggests that ‘participation in structured arts activities improves pre-school and primary school aged children’s early literacy skills’ (Tripney et al., 2010, p. 20). Of the studies included, four measured the impact of musical activities on phonological awareness, vocabulary and nonsense word fluency, three of reading (e.g., Piro & Ortiz, 2009), and one on writing (i.e., Standley & Hughes, 1997). A small-scale study of children aged between 6 and 9 years taking part in music lessons reported a link between the length of music training and reading comprehension (Corrigall & Trainor, 2011). Musical activities undertaken as part of the LtM programme were those to be more likely to have an impact on specific literacy and language skills, such as rhythm (implicated in dyslexia studies, see for example, Goswami, Huss, Mead, Fosker, & Verney, 2012) and musical notation (Strait & Kraus, 2011), rather than general music activity.


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The Supportive Environment Research suggests that we all have the capacity to be ‘musical’ (Gardner, 1983; Sloboda, 1985) and that it is rare to meet a child who is ‘unmusical’ if given both an appropriate task and supportive environment (Welch, 2000). However, there remains a need to ensure that the ‘supportive environment’ extends beyond the duration of any single intervention, which in the current UK context tend to be relatively short term, intensive programmes undertaken by experts from external organisations. Specific elements of the LtM programme were designed so as to foster a creative collaboration combining the actions of modelling and purposive watching. Over time, the collaborative approach sought to encourage the class teacher to enter into a process of learning termed as ‘apprenticeship learning’ or ‘situated learning’ as described by Lave and Wenger (1991). Here, the acquisition of skills is achieved through ‘legitimate peripheral participation’ in a community of practice, that, over time, may turn into full participation (1991). The LtM practitioners comprise the initial ‘community of practice’, within which the class teachers learn by watching, adopting and adapting skills and approaches. The practitioners adopt the role of facilitator in which there is ‘a withering of the teacher’s role as an authority-figure’ and an emphasis on enabling musical encounters between the class teacher and pupils (Murray Schafer, 1979, p. 26). In addition, Koopman (2007, p. 157) describes a process of ‘authentic learning’ in which the learner acts as part of a practice orientated, complex task situation, with the opportunity for personal initiative and exploration. Practitioners within the sessions model an appropriate model of musical authority, moving beyond the transmission of specific skills towards a model of situated learning in which ‘one can only learn what is appropriate by participating in a particular musical practice, finding out what “works” in a specific situation and how others act in such a situation’ (Koopman, 2007, p. 158). ‘Most learning is not the result of instruction.


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It is rather the result of unhampered participation in a meaningful setting’ (Illich, 2000, p. 38) and as such, provides the ideal conditions for learning what a teacher of music looks, sounds and feels like.

The Collaborative Context Between 2010 and 2013 the New London Orchestra (NLO), undertook a series of linked projects in primary schools in Newham, East London that were focused on enhancing children’s literacy skills through musical activity. Under the broad umbrella of the LtM programme, each individual project was typical of the outreach work of the NLO, one of London’s more independent-minded chamber orchestras, in that the project was entirely ‘un-orchestral’, involving neither Western classical musicians, nor any regular members of the orchestra. However, it followed a distinct and established tradition within the NLO’s education department of creating a broad musical canvas with which to inspire children. Over time, the LtM programme has become a flagship educational outreach project for the orchestra (Knight, 2011). The majority of the NLO programme was funded by the J.P.Morgan Chase Foundation (a charitable arm of the banking group) whose policy of ‘strategic philanthropy’ encouraged the NLO to devise a project that would have an impact both within and beyond the boundaries of the school-based workshops, geographically and pedagogically. Central to the successful planning and implementation of the programme was the conviction that collaborative working between stakeholders and invested parties would strengthen both provision and the opportunity to reflect critically upon the process. Academic research specialists in music, musical learning and young children’s literacy development from the Institute of Education, University of London (IoE) were


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invited to join the NLO/schools conversation about the design and implementation of the programme, as well as to evaluate the extent to which the aims were achieved. Impact was defined in terms of observable changes in children’s literacy skills, as well as in the professional development of the teachers involved. The LtM programme was developed by Julian Knight, General Manager of the NLO from 2000 to 2010, during which time a pilot study was completed and funding for the next phases of the programme was secured. From 2010 onwards, Knight was engaged as a freelance project manager to oversee all aspects of the 3-year programme (2010–2013). At this time he was also setting up a new charity called Creative Futures (UK), which has since developed further collaborative projects with the IoE in the areas of music in early years settings and primary education. The collaborative relationship established between the NLO, Creative Futures (UK) and the IoE was to prove vital to the ongoing success of the LtM programme, ensuring that elements of best practice, local knowledge, international expertise and artistic vision were discussed with stakeholders and disseminated beyond LtM’s immediate boundaries. Literacy was not the only curriculum subject that the NLO explored through music. The year 2000 was named National Maths Year in English primary schools. Under the enlightened leadership of the then Director of Education, Christine Whatford CBE, the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham invested in a variety of NLO projects which sought to support the development of numeracy skills through musical activities. At this stage of the programme’s development, no formal research was undertaken to evaluate the effectiveness of the ‘Maths and Music’ project in terms of its impact on pupil numeracy. However, these programmes were well received by pupils and teachers, and deemed sufficiently successful by the borough that it agreed to widen the remit so as to explore both the science and literacy curricula through musical activities. In


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2003, the NLO and University College London (UCL) collaborated on a conferencefestival called ‘Music and the Mind’ through which musicians, practitioners and academics were brought together to discuss the relationship between neuroscience and music, and which both initiated and strengthened subsequent partnerships with researchers, including Professor Graham Welch (Chair of Music Education, IoE) and colleagues. A common interest concerning the possible relationship between musical activities and broader aspects of learning, more specifically related to literacy, was explored. Three years later, funding was in place to undertake a project in six London primary schools (five in Southwark and one in Hammersmith and Fulham) and for a research team to be engaged formally to evaluate the programme in two of the intervention schools. The research methodology included the collection of a range of quantitative data to investigate the potential impact of music workshops on children’s literacy and musical skills. However, the results at that time were not encouraging: Emergent data indicated no evident correlation between musical activity and the development of aspects of literacy being measured (Purves, Long, Castell-Evans, & Welch, 2006). Nevertheless, the project did have some positive outcomes, including enhanced pupil and teacher attitudes towards undertaking musical activities and playing musical instruments. This positive feedback gave the NLO greater determination to go back to the drawing board in order to refine and revise the workshop content, structure and approach. Over time, the work of the NLO moved progressively Eastwards across London, involving another trial project with mixed results in schools in Tower Hamlets along the way and, in 2010, settled in the London Borough of Newham, where it had been leading a series of large-scale community music projects called ‘Newham Welcomes the World’. Primary school literacy results were below the national average across the borough.


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Funding was secured from a variety of sources to run the revised LtM programme on a larger scale in two Year 2 (pupils aged 6–7 years) classes of a primary school where, as typified by many of the primary settings in Newham, over 85 per cent of pupils were reported to speak English as an Additional Language. The intervening period had offered time for reflection and the opportunity for a significant revision of the content and structure of the LtM programme. The changes included (a) the extension of the project from 6–12 weeks to 20 weeks, based on feedback from earlier project participants who had questioned whether the shorter duration programme was able to have a lasting impact; and (b) focusing the project on younger pupils (i.e., in Year 2 rather than Years 4 or 5 pupils) because educators based within the London boroughs had previously expected that the impact of interventions on learning would be greater. Drawing on research evidence on musical development, and the neurosciences of music and early literacy (Anvari et al., 2002; Koelsch et al., 2007; Kraus & Chandrasekaran, 2010), the LtM project workshop content was amended to include a consistent focus on rhythmic activities, with a greater integration of musical and literacy devices throughout the programme.

The Intervention Phase One: Early Stages of the Programme Phase One of LtM took place over the spring and summer terms of 2010 with two classes of Year 2 pupils. The programme was led by a team of three practitioners (a performance poet and two musicians), each of whom had been involved in previous NLO work. Although no formal research evaluation of this phase of the programme was undertaken, staff from the education department of the NLO were able to compare


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pupils’ end of year results against the targets and predictions that the school had made at the start of the year. These teacher-based predictions take place within all primary schools in England and are based on the pupil’s previous school performance and results at the end of Year 1. This comparison suggested that the 20-week project had had a positive impact as follows: •

Reading skills: The school-level target was that 65.5 per cent of pupils would achieve Level 2b1 or above. In end of year testing, 81.4 per cent of pupils achieved Level 2b or above;

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Pupils in English Primary schools are taught in two ‘Key Stages’. The first, Key Stage 1, covers Reception,

Years 1 and 2 (with the majority of pupils aged between 5 and 7 years), whilst the second, Key Stage 2, covers Year 3 through to 6 (with the majority of pupils aged between 8 and 11 years). Within the area of literacy, teachers aim to integrate speaking and listening activities with reading and writing activities. During Key Stage 1, pupils are expected to learn to speak confidently and listen to what others have to say. There is an expectation that they will begin to read and write independently and with enthusiasm and, in addition, use language to explore their own experiences and imaginary worlds. At the end of Year 2 (with the majority of pupils aged 7 years), there is a national target for pupils to achieve Level 2 in Literacy. The Level 2 banding is, in many schools, subdivided into three further categories of a, b and c so as to define progression within the Level. For example, the Department for Education (DfE) publishes guidelines that define Level 2 achievement as being demonstrated when a ‘pupil begins to show confidence in talking and listening, particularly where the topics interest them. On occasions, they show awareness of the needs of the listener by including relevant detail. In developing and explaining their ideas they speak clearly and use a growing vocabulary. They usually listen carefully and respond with increasing appropriateness to what others say. They are beginning to be aware that in some situations a more formal vocabulary and tone of voice are used’

http://www.education.gov.uk/schools/teachingandlearning/curriculum/primary/b0019 8874/english/attainment/en3


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•

Writing skills: The school-level target was that 75.5 per cent of pupils would achieve Level 2b or above. In end of year testing, 78 per cent of pupils achieved Level 2b or above;

•

Speaking and Listening: Where no formal target was set (since this is not assessed at the end of Year 1), but where 78 per cent of pupils achieved level 2b+, and 37 per cent of pupils achieved the target level ascribed for older pupils at the end of Year 3. As the LtM project had been largely focussed on oral work, with little or no

reading or writing as part of the workshops, the implied positive results in end-of-year assessments in speaking and listening skills was reassuring rather than surprising, yet the corresponding improvement in reading, and, to a lesser extent in writing, was of particular interest. These initial findings appeared to suggest that engagement in musical activity could positively impact on other areas of children’s learning and, to some extent, those areas of learning that are not an explicitly reinforced within the workshops. An expanded project team made up of musicians, practitioners and researchers, as well as the class teachers, was keen to learn more about if, how and why differences were occurring. The next step was for the partners to work towards developing the LtM programme further so as to focus on activities that were most likely to affect positive changes in pupil learning. Armed with the results from the first phase, the NLO succeeded in gaining a 3year investment in LtM from the J.P.Morgan Chase Foundation. This funding was to include a research analysis of the project by IoE colleagues that, it was hoped, would begin to answer the questions around possible skills transfer and lead to a better understanding of how and to what extent music-based activities could support the development of literacy skills in children. The programme was again focused in the


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London Borough of Newham and implemented in three further phases. Each phase took place in subsequent academic years: (a) a 20-week programme with Year 2 pupils in three primary schools (Phase Two: 2010–2011); (b) a teacher-development programme in just over half of all primary schools (n=33 schools took part) from across the borough (Phase Three: 2011–2012); and, finally (c) a synthesis of the two previous phases based in five primary schools (Phase Four: 2012–2013).

Phase Two: Collaborating with Pupils and Teachers Phase Two of LtM took place in three Newham primary schools between January and July of 2011. It involved pairs of NLO workshop leaders providing weekly workshops at each of the three schools over the duration of two terms. In total, seven classes of approximately 30 children were involved, with each class being allocated a 50minute workshop with two practitioners present at the same time each week. The workshop leaders comprised a performance poet (in all three schools) working with a singer-songwriter in one school and a saxophonist in the other two schools. Teachers were involved in the initial planning and then actively encouraged to be involved in the workshops, as well as to continue the activities with their pupils between LtM sessions. The involvement of the class teachers was a fundamental part of the creative collaboration, ensuring continuity of learning and experience throughout the school week. Overall, n=268 children took part, of whom n=207 experienced the LtM programme (seven classes across three schools) and n=61 acted as controls (two classes in one school). The workshop content was entirely oral, and designed to develop children’s enjoyment of, and interaction with, words and music. The activities were intended to build pupils’ confidence at speaking out, develop a sense of rhythm and pulse as well as an appreciation of the rhythm of speech and language, enhance


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understanding of the sounds of words, and to create a sense of fun around the exploration of language. The workshop content fell into four categories: (a) games, (b) poems, (c) stories and (d) songs. There was a purposeful overlap between these categories, with the pupils learning that stories could be made into poems and poems set to music so as to create songs. In addition, pupils worked to produce their own lyrics that were performed as stories and poems and songs. The most exciting results were seen when the collaborating teacher supplied detailed teaching plans for literacy, enabling the workshop leaders to weave the content of the session more coherently around the same themes, with key texts being used elsewhere in class. This led to some very creative extensions of class activity, such as the ‘Wolfman Rap’ – a re-telling of the traditional tale of ‘Little Red Riding Hood’ in which the hapless wolf is portrayed as manipulated and misunderstood. Many of the activities involved taking an existing poem or song as a starting point, and then working with the children to devise either new verses, or a completely new text. Using these texts, the children and their teachers worked alongside the practitioners so as to create a simple song from its component parts (rhythm, melody, harmony, dynamics). They created a rhythm for the text through simple games and exercises (by manipulating the syllabic pattern) and then a melody (through experimentation with the voice), before adding an accompaniment using sound effects, body percussion and tuned classroom instruments, such as xylophones. A strength of the programme was the use of simple constructs such as ostinato (a repeated rhythmic pattern), and this, in combination with a limited number of pre-selected pitches for the melody, meant that the class teachers were more able to adopt this model of classroom composition and become confident that they (as self described ‘non musicians’) would be able to support their pupils’ creative skills.


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Other activities explored rhythm. For example, a simple rhythmic pattern would be modelled through call and response clapping. Vowel or consonant sounds were added to the rhythm and, as this was mastered, whole words were added. Alternatively, a short phrase was spoken and pupils clapped its inherent rhythm back. Through these simple activities pupils learned the importance of rhythm in speech and language and began to identify and physically demonstrate the rhythmic patterns of oral speech. The final element in each compositional activity was to create a ‘score’ so that a visual record could be kept for future performances. A variety of methods was used, including the creation of transient scores on the classroom floor, with basic rhythms and pitches mapped out and then directed by pupils who ‘walked the score’, as well as more permanent ‘graphic scores’, with pupils creating symbols to represent the rhythms, pitch and structure of their pieces. The pupils often worked together to produce beautiful and imaginative scores to represent the music that they had created and these served as lasting and physical mementos of the project. The research evaluation design embraced pre- and post-intervention measures with controls (pupils who were outside the programme) in music (singing), oracy and literacy (reading) and social inclusion. Overall, there was an average reading-age improvement across the seven LtM programme classes of 8.4 months. This compares with an average reading age improvement in the two control classes of 1.8 months (see Figure 17.1). The difference in reading age improvement between pupils in LtM and control classes was statistically significant. Pupils in the LtM programme classes increased their reading score, on average, by at least their 5-month change in chronological age and, in the majority of programme classes, by much more. The improvements in average reading age score for pupils in LtM classes ranged from a minimum of 4.8 months to 13.2 months. In contrast, despite the oral bias in the content of the weekly workshops, there were no


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statistically significant changes in pupils’ oracy skills (at least as measured using Renfrew, 1997). In terms of musical behaviour, the pupils in the LtM classes made a significant improvement in their singing ability compared to controls and, separately, sustained their perceived sense of being socially included. Furthermore, the programme impacts were equally beneficial for pupils of both sexes. The teachers and teaching assistants reported that the programme had also made an important contribution to their own understanding and development.

Mean r eading ages Start of NLO programme Mean r eading ages at End of NLO programme 7.5

7.05 6.89

6.85

Control

Figure 17.1

Intervention

Reading ages based on New Group Reading Test standard

scores for intervention and control groups, at pre- and post-test, beginning and end of the LtM project


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Phase Three: Spreading the Word (and the Music) Phase Three involved each of 30 primary schools in Newham receiving three twilight INSET2 workshops over the duration of one or two school terms. The workshops formed part of the schools’ Continuing Professional Development (CPD) programme and were endorsed by the Newham Primary Partnership Board. The content of the INSET sessions was a distillation of the 20-week programme from Phase Two and included a range of activities designed to support achievement in literacy skills by drawing on aspects of the musical content suitable for teachers who saw themselves as non music-specialists. The main objectives were to raise teacher confidence in using music and to promote a number of new skills and knowledge of music and literacy tools and strategies, backed up by online resources. In total, n=662 teachers and teaching assistants took part in these LtM Phase Three workshops. As in Phase Two, activities were focused on rhythm, clapping games, poetry and story-telling, singing and songwriting. No prior formal musical expertise was expected of the teachers taking part: The sessions were intended to be accessible, informative and engaging for teachers of all Key Stages of the primary curriculum, from Reception class to Year 6. The content of the three INSET sessions was broadly as follows:

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In Service Training (INSET) provision describes professional training and development opportunities for

teachers across a wide variety of areas and topics. Some take place as part of 5 allocated statutory days during the school year when pupils are not required to attend the school, some during the school day (with additional staff to cover classroom duties), whilst others take place in ‘twilight sessions’ immediately after the school day ends.


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•

Session 1: Rhythm activities (e.g., clapping games); simple adaptable stories/poems (used to generate new lyrics and material); and songs (building vocal confidence, and creating new verses);

•

Session 2: Exploring the rhythm of language (using a short phrase, clapping its rhythm, and gradually adding to the phrase to create a more complex rhythm); composing simple songs (based on the rhythms created earlier); creating a ‘score on the floor’ of the song created;

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Session 3: Using stories and music to explore spelling, the different characteristics of letters, the relationship between sounds and words and syntax (e.g., taking the individual letters of a complex word and creating a story around each letter; then taking a short sentence and exploring it musically by giving each word type a different sound or instrument). Overall, teachers reported that the INSET workshops proved to be an engaging

and energetic introduction to the variety of ways in which music can be embedded into everyday teaching practices so as to support literacy (see Figure 17.2). In addition, this outcome could be achieved without the need for significant re-training on the part of the teachers. The research evidence suggested that the percentage of participants who considered themselves to be ‘musicians’ more than doubled as a result of the LtM programme (up from 14.8 per cent to 30.2 per cent). Similarly, there was a doubling of the proportion of participants who reported themselves to be ‘confident’ in teaching music to their pupils (up from 25.7 per cent to 53.1 per cent). At the end of the programme, nearly two-thirds of participants (59.5 per cent) felt that they enjoyed teaching music (up from 30.6 per cent at the beginning) and, in addition, there was a shift from a minority (31.9 per cent) to a majority (54.9 per cent) who said that they felt confident enough to lead singing with their pupils by the end of the programme.


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Especially positive was the change in the proportion of teachers who reported an understanding of how music activities could support aspects of literacy as part of their everyday teaching practice, up from two-third (64.5 per cent) to nearly all (89.3 per cent). There was also evidence of a cultural shift in the application of this understanding to customary teaching practices; by the end of the programme, two-thirds of teachers had used music-based activities to support other aspects of learning, including literacy (up from 43 per cent to 63.9 per cent). Two-thirds (66.3 per cent) reported that they would now use them on a daily basis (compared with 48.6 per cent at the beginning). Threequarters of participants (77.7 per cent) reported that NLO programme activities would be useful in their classes, particularly those activities most clearly linked to literacy-based learning objectives (Saunders, Welch, & Himonides, 2013). 100 90 80 70 60 s se n o sp e r f o e ga t n e cr e P

50 40 30 20 10 0

I am I I use music confident understand based that I can the benefits activities to sing well of using support enough to music other lead music based aspects of in my class activities learning

I am a musician

I am confident about teaching music to my class

I e njoy teaching music

Pre-‐test r esponse (%)

14.8

25.7

30.6

31.9

64.5

43

48.6

Post-‐test r esponse (%)

30.2

53.1

59.5

54.9

89.3

63.9

66.3

Figure 17.2

Professional practice: Comparison of responses at pre- and

post-test of Phase Three LtM Programme


I use musical activities with my class on a daily basis

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Phase Four: A Synthesis of Approaches Phase Four (January to July of 2013) involved seven ‘in-class’ workshops that built on material covered in the INSET programme (Phase Three). The NLO workshop leaders explicitly modelled a series of activities and then, over the seven workshops, mentored the class teachers so as to support the transition of control and artistic direction of the project from the LtM practitioners to the teachers. In the initial stages, in collaboration with class teachers, the LtM practitioners established general ways of working and outlined specific goals. As the class teachers become more confident, the LtM practitionerss and teachers team-taught short and pre-agreed elements of the music session. In the more successful settings, by the end of the intervention, the practitioners had ceded control and were able to act less as leaders and more as prompts, accompanying musicians or teaching assistants, thus allowing class teachers to lead most of the processes and activities themselves. The content of the project was built upon a single activity, which had been introduced in the first INSET workshop. A short circular poem about a mountain, a cave and a holy man was the starting point. Pupils were invited to brainstorm ideas so as create new material. Each class produced an elaborated version of the story during the opening two workshops. Class teachers were encouraged to take ownership of the project and to continue to develop material with pupils outside the workshop setting. This created an unexpected barrier: many teachers were reluctant to change any of the words that had been suggested by LtM practitioners since they assumed these were in some way artistically protected. However, given permission to play and extend upon these initial blueprints, their own creativity was used to good effect in supporting the creative endeavours of their pupils. The next task required that the text be set to music. Working alongside the class teachers and pupils, the LtM practitionerss selected short


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sections of text, which could be treated as a chorus. Everyone was involved in creating the melody. The remaining sections of the text were treated in a variety of ways: either spoken over a musical soundscape, or sung to a simple melodic phrase in a call and response fashion, or simply spoken with interjections of musical colour to illustrate certain words or atmospheres. Towards the final stages, the class teachers were supported in taking responsibility for refining and polishing the composition, leading to an informal performance and recording. This process was a steep learning curve for those teachers who may not have considered themselves as ‘musicians’, ‘poets’ or ‘composers’ before. However, without exception, teachers reported that they were justly proud with what they and their classes had achieved.

Teaching the Teachers to Teach: Communication and Collaboration A central strand of each phase of the NLO’s LtM programme was to support primary school teachers in their teaching of musical activities. This involved developing the skills set of individual teachers as well as their confidence in approaching musical activities within the classroom. During each workshop, the NLO practitioners modelled songs, rhythms and activities with the pupils and encouraged the teaching staff to rehearse these activities both within the workshop setting and beyond, thereby making concrete links between the intervention and the regular routine of learning activities undertaken by the pupils. Teachers were able to observe the initial stimulus for an activity as well as how to introduce and extend an activity so as to accommodate a range of individual pupil abilities. Activities focussed on specific elements of music – for example rhythmic skills – as well as elements of language, including, for example, (a) narrative structure, (b) rhyming schemes, (c) similes and metaphors, (d) synonyms, (e) adjectives, and (f) wider knowledge of languages from around the world.


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In the following examples, the activities observed in the workshops during Phase Two (2011) are presented, alongside supporting activities by class teachers, in order to illustrate the emerging collaborative working patterns. In successful settings, the LtM practitionerss and teaching staff created a positive and supportive classrooms, in which pupils were able to engage and achieve in aspects of both music and literacy. Through sustained teamwork, the teachers and NLO team were able to demonstrate expert craft knowledge of their own domain, as well as a growing awareness of others’, so as to contribute to a learning experience that embraced musical as well as literacy benefits. From systematic classroom-based observations (n=14) of LtM sessions, findings are comparable with existing evidence reported from other research into music-based interventions in both the formal and non-formal sector of education (see, for example, Saunders, Papageorgi, Himonides, Rinta, & Welch, 2011; Saunders & Welch, 2012).

Examples of Effective Workshop Activities The LtM practitioner clapped a simple rhythm to the class (slow, slow, quick quick, slow) accompanying their actions with the phrase ‘don’t clap this one back’. In a series of increasingly complex call and response activity of clapping and body percussion rhythms, the pupils were required to remember and perform each clapped rhythm, maintaining a sense of pulse and, when they recognised the ‘slow, slow, quick quick, slow’ pattern, respond verbally with ‘don’t clap this one back’ in preference to clapping. Within 2 minutes, the group sense of pulse displayed by the pupils grew stronger, as did their ability to remember longer and more intricate phrases. Children demonstrated acute listening skills in recognising the key pattern as it became embedded within increasingly complex patterns and a variety of timbres. Both the pupils and the class teacher were invited to create rhythms for the rest of the class to respond to, allowing different


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members of the group to control the activity. After the session, one class teacher described how, as both the task and the attention of the pupils had been centred on the hands (rather than the face or, more pertinently for her, the voice), she had felt confident to take her turn in leading and shaping the activity. During a subsequent visit to the same teacher, it was observed that she had adopted and adapted the ‘don’t clap this one back’ exercise as part of her classroom management ‘toolbox’ of skills. In a later session, the LtM practitioner sang, unaccompanied, a Jamaican Creole song ‘Long time gal mi neva see you’. He spoke of the differences in language, for example the ‘peel head John Crow’ (a bald-headed vulture), encouraging the pupils to experiment with their pronunciation of the words in order to perform the song. He encouraged the pupils to play with the language being used and to offer alternative meanings for the descriptions, as well as to suggest different examples of homecomings or meeting with old friends. Together, the group agreed a simple dance to accompany their singing. They danced rhythmically, with a strong sense of pulse. Over the course of the activity, the group had learnt a song through call and response, created a simple dance to accompany it, and, for some, widened their knowledge of different musical cultures and language. The class teacher was able to extend the learning experience of the pupils through the task introduced by the LtM practitioner. The class teacher facilitated the pupils in sharing, through long dialogues, universal concepts such as familial relationships. The teacher skilfully identified similar songs across other cultures, and then sang a fragment of a song she recalled from childhood. The pupils responded warmly to this sharing and the subsequent group performance of the song and dance was full of energy. This was especially important for some pupils who were able to identify with these songs as part of their own cultural understanding and heritage. At a later meeting with the class teacher, she recalled that she had not thought of that song in years but that


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she ‘just had the urge to sing it’ as her contribution to the music making and her understanding of ‘homecoming’. Working in close collaboration with the class teacher of another school, the LtM practitioner based a series of workshops around the same theme of ‘traditional tales’ as was being used within class lessons. The LtM practitioner introduced to the class the possibility that the story of ‘Little Red Riding Hood’ could be re-interpreted, with ‘Red’ as a cruel and vindictive girl and the wolf as misunderstood. The class was divided into small groups, each with an adult to act as scribe, and over an extended period asked to think of a list of words to describe these key characters. The LtM practitioner and class teacher worked in partnership to support this activity, both encouraging the pupils to explore how these new characters might feel, think and act. The class teacher had prepared the class for the activity by ensuring that each of the pupils was familiar with the traditional setting of the tale and its underlying message. The pupils were able to enjoy engaging with an alternative, subversive version. Each group then offered their favourite words for consideration by the rest of the class, with the class teacher acting as scribe and recording those suggestions valued by other groups. This ‘word bank’ became a key resource for further collaborative creative writing tasks later that day and was displayed throughout the following week. In this example, the activities completed within the intervention session were prefaced by foundation work undertaken by the class teacher (so as to ensure that each child was able to access and engage with the task fully). Within the workshop, the class teacher was present, engaged and collaborating effectively so as to share the teaching through the prior agreement of strategies, aims and goals. In addition, the stimulus activities created within the workshop were followed up in more detail, or applied to other aspects of literacy such as creative writing.


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The pupils undertook almost no reading or writing activities within the workshop. Indeed, the intention of both LtM practitioners and class teachers was to create a physical, energetic learning experience designed to stimulate thinking and physical movement. The sessions provided the stimulus, energy and creative input that supported reading and writing based tasks during the curriculum time that followed. Examples of effective practice, such as that described above, suggest that benefits can accrue by developing and maintaining close working partnerships between class teachers and visiting musicians. Establishing effective working partnerships requires that both parties communicate frequently, effectively and openly in order to build on their respective strengths. Previous research has indicated the necessary degree of immersion and commitment required for teachers to change their perceptions of themselves in relation to the arts (Upitis, Smithrim, & Soren, 1999). Such work suggests that many arts interventions fail to enable the participant teacher to extend beyond a transitory level (or ‘first level of transformation’) in which they feel part of a larger arts community, but are unable to translate this into sustained changes in classroom practice or personal belief. There is, perhaps, some hope that the examples presented provide evidence of transformation beyond this initial stage, including ‘changing [teachers’] views of the [value/role of] arts in children’s lives’ and ‘altered views of the role of the arts curriculum’ (Upitis et al., 1999). Further longitudinal work is required to determine the transitory or persistent nature of the changes described by the teachers who took part in the LtM programme.

The Collaborative Process: Implications for Future Practice Arts projects based in educational settings have often involved the collision of two (or more) worlds: artists’ and educators’. Individuals from neither world could be


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assumed to have a deep experience nor understanding of the other’s profession. Often, what we do not understand we think of as difficult, magical, not ‘like us’. Introducing a research element into the learning and teaching context created a validated and valuable breathing space within which all of the interested parties were encouraged to explore their own craft knowledge and practice and also that of others: artists, educators and researchers alike. The process of reflection and discussion also facilitated the development of a shared language, through which each party might better understand the mutual strengths and similarities in best practice across the different ways of working and making sense of the world. In successful settings, the practitioner and teaching staff worked in close partnership to create a positive and supportive context in which pupils were able to engage and achieve in aspects of both music and literacy. Through sustained teamwork, both the teachers and LtM practitioners were able to demonstrate expert craft knowledge of their own domain, and develop a growing awareness of the craft knowledge of others. In some settings, this was more of a one-way interaction (at least initially) in which the expertise domains of NLO team members and teacher existed as discrete but complimentary fields. Yet, together, they were able to create rich and vibrant learning experiences for the pupils. In other contexts, however, a two-way interaction was observed to take place, in which the expertise domains of each professional was complimentary, but the boundaries were more permeable, enabling each professional, over time, to incorporate new facets of others’ and collaborative expertise into their everyday practice. In extraordinary examples, there was evidence of a three-way interaction in which individual young pupils were supported to experiment with aspects of music and literacy, moving beyond passive engagement towards a role of peer expert capable of initiating horizontal learning relationships with others.


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For an arts organisation such as the NLO, the research undertaken and findings published as a result of the various LtM projects are a valuable resource for future use, as well as a validation of the work undertaken. The research findings contribute to the ongoing debate regarding the place and value of the arts in our society and, as such, may be of use to other organisations working in related areas. Specifically for the NLO, the research process and findings create a solid basis upon which to scale up project activity in the future. For the music education researchers, the LtM programme provided an ideal opportunity to engage practically with the challenges inherent in seeking how learning might be promoted through music in one of the most deprived areas in the UK, not as a side product, but as a specific goal. The research tools needed to be sensitive to the contributions of all the participants – pupils, teachers, NLO team members – as well as being related to emerging research evidence across other disciplines in the social and neurosciences. Collaboration was essential for the critical evaluation of both the programme and also the researchers’ role within it. The input of professional advice and facilitation, especially in the planning stages of the project when stakeholders were invited to share in a discussion concerning the possible content of the programme, was invaluable. Later, detailed feedback from workshop observations provided ongoing professional development for the practitioners and project managers. This was a cyclical process of feedback and feeding forward, ensuring that each stage of the project built upon successes and addressed specific weaknesses. The partnership created a learning opportunity for the NLO team to work closely with research-focused academics. The relationship has led to a greater understanding of the process involved in designing, monitoring and assessing a programme in order to achieve the best possible outcomes for the participants.


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The collaboration was the spark of an ongoing journey in which all parties continue to explore the potential for the arts to impact positively on the lives of young people. The evaluation raised questions that are now being considered from a range of different perspectives, including music-based projects in early years’ settings and string based instrumental tuition in primary settings on a range of key skills. More generally, the successful collaboration between the NLO and IoE, as well as participant schools, and the opportunity this made for academics and practitioners to work in partnership in the development and delivery of the programme, was key to the establishment of Creative Futures (UK), a multi-arts agency established by Knight in 2011. A founding aim of the organisation is to ensure that research evaluations are designed into arts provision so as to continue to examine critically the impact of engaging with the arts on children’s wider development. By disseminating findings from both their own and others’ work, Creative Futures is attempting to bridge the gap between academic research and educational and community arts to the benefit of both sectors. Collaboration is central to all the activity as we seek to build a more holistic and composite understanding of music’s place and potential.

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